"Time? What do you mean by that? Can you like- stop the time or what?"
I am a bit confused, because just "time" could be more specific. Time could be literally anything.
He sighs and responds:
"No it's just- I can do almost everything that has to do with time. Like I could stop time, yea. But I can also rise the time of a human being so fast, that it dies because of the huge age rise. Wanna try?"
He smiles but I back away.
"Chill I was just joking. I can also travel through time, but I'm sure that this fact is a bit obvious."
He says, and I calm down. I wouldn't want to become an old man, but I'm sure that would be impossible. Doctors predicted that my body will stop aging when I am around 20 years old, because of my immortality.
"Have you seen the future?"
I ask while looking at him. Now I am curious. I know that he was outside, but when he can travel through time, he sure has seen the future.
He doesn't reply for quite a time, but then he looks on the ground and responds to my question.
"Well this question is complicated. I made a rule for myself, that if it's not completely necessary, I won't travel in the future. I don't think that... I want to see that."
As I only nod he speaks again:
"But I saw the past. The green nature and the happy people. I saw hope and joy. You can't know how the world was before the climate change and the virus, but it was beautiful."
I think this is the first time that I've seen him smile. As he realized that he is smiling he coughs and brushes it off.
"I wish I could see it. The past, I mean. I wish I could travel through time, just like you."
He looks at me as if I said something wrong.
"Don't say that. I saw many loved ones die. I've seen things, Jinsei, that you don't want to see. I-..."
When he speaks about his feelings, or his thoughts, he looks way more sensible. Not really fragile, but I would say he looks more human than I've had imagined such powerful beings to be. I don't want to tell him what I have seen. The experiments, the corpses, or the amount of people I saw scream in pain or to beg for their lives. If I start to talk too much about myself he might lose the interest. He might think I'm weird. I need to get close to him, that's what the professor said.
"I'm sorry to hear that. You don't have to talk about it."
I'm not good at dealing with emotions, but I've seen people apologize in an emotional moment. I don't know why they would apologize, for a thing that isn't their fault at all, but it seems to work out, because now he is looking at me.
"Thank you for the support, Jinsei. It's nice to have someone, after all this time, to talk to."
I try to smile, just like I practiced in the mirror yesterday, but I immediately stop because he is looking at me like I have a psychotic problem.
"Listen, Shinda. If you want to talk about something then you can tell me everything you like. I will listen to you"
I have to find out more about him for the professor.
"Just Shin will be fine."
"What?"
"Just call me Shin. Shinda is maybe a bit too long, that's why"
He looks at me like it is nothing, but he just boldly changed the name the professor gave him to a shorter form, just because it's "easier to say"? Can he just do that? Is that allowed?
"Okay then Shind-"
"Just Shin."
He interrupted me.
"Shin? Just Shin? Don't you like the name Shinda?"
I ask confused and he looks as a response confused at me.
"Why would I like the name a disgusting old man gave me? But since I don't remember my real name, I'll just play a long. But I could at least make it sound cooler, right? I could call you Jin as we-"
"No, thank you. I think I'd prefer Jinsei. The name suits me better than Jin. Also I think the professor wouldn't let that slide. If you want to be called Shin it's probably fine, because you're rare. You are a 0. But not with me."
I interrupted him this time. He listens to me with a few nods and responds:
"Fine whatever. It's not my fault if you want to live in that small bubble of yours. One day you will face reality, but then it'll be too late."
He looks like he has lost the interest again, because now he stood up and starts to walk through the room, as if I wasn't in here.
"You don't like me, do you?"
I look at him and he turns around to look at me. He smiles.
"I despise you, actually."
I look at him with wide eyes, even though I expected that. The first thing he called me was "Lab rat", that's why I had the suspicion that he thinks I am loyal to the laboratory.
I don't like him either.
It's not like I care if people like, or despise me, but I wanted to get close with him because the professor ordered so.
...
What? I wanted what? I see.
I know why he despises me. He is right.
Maybe I am a lab rat after all.